Moving to Boston & want to buy... (Somerville, Brookline: apartment, rent)

[neuronx]

Hello all!

I've been doing lots of research prior to moving to Boston from Montreal, and have found this board to be really useful. However, most of the topics seem to be focused on renting while I want to buy a place. I'll try to include as much info as possible, and am hoping for as much info/advice as possible!

We are recently married 30 year olds w/ no kids (yet), who will be working at Harvard Medical/MGH. We want a neighborhood with very low crime, lots of restaurants/cafes/quiet hangouts, markets/grocery stores nearby, on or near the T, and with a younger (25-35ish) crowd. A bohemian feel is always good too!

We are looking for a condo or "2/3 family" home, with 2 bedrooms, and at least 1000sq feet area. A back yard would be really nice, but not a deal breaker. We're willing to spend a maximum of $350,000, and hope that the price will go up enough so that when we sell in 4-5 years (definite) we'd make a little bit of money on the investment. We don't mind traveling on public transportation (T, train) as long as its not for more than 30 minutes in traffic. We will have a car, but would like to use it for weekends and shopping trips only.

So far, the areas we are "focusing" our search on are Somerville, Jamaica Plain, Brookline, Coolidge Corner, Forest Hills, Roslindale, South End and the Back Bay. Of course, this is way too long a list! What I'd like is to narrow this down to 2 or 3 (max!) neighborhoods, so that we can find a realtor to work with us to find a home. We will be moving to Boston in July/August 2008, and so will be finding a realtor to help in the next few months.

I appreciate everyones help, and hope that we can narrow the field down to 2-3 neighborhoods. Please let me know if any more info is needed!

Thanks,
Nader

[investtt]

I'd try Somerville. It's young, and I feel safe when I go there.

I kind of doubt there's much in terms of what your looking for in Back Bay in your price range.

[eevee]

with that price tag, you won't find anything in Coolidge Corner and parts of JP and Somerville. and the area near Forest Hills and Roslindale is not super safe (Forest Hills can be quite sketchy at night and a store was recently robbed in broad daylight there. and some parts in Roslindale, especially bordering Washington St. near Forest Hills can be iffy too). won't be able to fulfill all the desires on your list, but it won't be completely impossible.

also, and this is just my personal, inexperienced opinion (I don't know much about the current housing situation), wouldn't it it be easier to just rent out an apartment? there is no guarantee you'll make any profit, especially after only 4 years. also, if you do find a condo for 350k, it will likely not be in one of the best selling areas and/or not in the best of shape. you may even end up losing money if you have to renovate in order to attract buyers.

[Broknrekord3]

Originally Posted by investtt

I'd try Somerville. It's young, and I feel safe when I go there.

I kind of doubt there's much in terms of what your looking for in Back Bay in your price range.

Depends where you go in Somerville. Davis Square is my place of choice. My room mate was shot last year off of Kirkland St. Granted, it isn't something that happens all the time, but it does.

[investtt]

Originally Posted by Broknrekord3

Depends where you go in Somerville. Davis Square is my place of choice. My room mate was shot last year off of Kirkland St. Granted, it isn't something that happens all the time, but it does.

Omg...
Yeah, that's not common in Somerville. There are rougher parts, but not a place where I think people get murdered.

[neuronx]

Some good thoughts here...

So we've narrowed Somerville down to the area near Davis square - any other areas that are good? What about Ball/Inman/Teele/Union/Powderhouse sq, East/West Somerville and Prospect/Winter/Spring Hills?

I was also thinking of Charlestown, near the waterfront, and West Roxbury. Are these good areas? And what about other areas of Charlestown?

Thanks again!
Nader

[gmkarr]

Near Porter Square in Somerville is also very nice...

[neuronx]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all the replies. Now that we have a general idea of where to buy, how are the prices doing in Boston right now for the condo and multi-family home markets? Do yo expect the prices to come down any more, or do you see them going higher in the next year? When would be the best time to buy if we want to move to Boston in July/August?

Also, what should we expect to pay for a 2-bed, 1-2-bath condo/multi-family home in a good part of town? We don't want a fixer-upper and want to be as close to downtown/Longwood Medical as possible.

The areas we're interested in right now are: Brookline, Jamaica Plain, Coolidge Corner, and Somerville (and possibly Charlestown, depending on the location). Our number one pick though is Brookline and Brookline Village.

Thanks a lot!
Nader

[slang75]

I'm sorry to say, that price range will keep you out of Brookline. Maybe Brighton would be Ok. The commute from Somerville to Longwood would be pretty bad. If not for the commute, I would say that the Inman/Union sq. area of Somerville would be a nice fit. Hove you checked out ziprealty.com? They have some pretty cool tools to find homes with price drops. The realty is at the price rang you told us, you will have a hard time finding everything you want.

[lz1982]

You might be able to find something near Brighton Center for that price. The 65 bus goes from Brighton Center to Longwood. It's not the most exciting neighborhood, but it's reasonably safe and does have some young professional types. There are a lot of "triple-decker" three families there.